Not What They Seem
by goblz
Summary: One day at school will change the lives of everyone at Tree Hill. Rated R for violent themes. Chapter 9 posted!
1. A Beautiful Day

**Author's Notes: I must warn you that this story is about a school shooting. That's why this is rated R. That does mean there will be character deaths. There will be nothing overly graphic but please be aware. Secondly, this story is heavily about the relationship between Lucas and Nathan. It's what I find most interesting about the show. All the other characters are in it, and there will be things with them, so don't worry if you wanted to see anything about another character. The show's given me plenty to work with.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of these characters, the fictional town of Tree Hill, etc. No money was made, etc.**

**Chapter One**

The early spring morning looked promising. There were no clouds to blemish the bright sky as the sun began to peak over the horizon, with colors of purple and red dancing around it. The sound of the early birds chirping were a reminder that spring had come at last. The grass, trees, and bushes all boasted their natural shades of green as if winter had never been a problem.

The smell of bacon drifted past Lucas Scott's nose, pulling him from his deep sleep. With a disgruntled moan, the blond rolled over and looked at his alarm clock, which read 5:56. Four minutes until his alarm clock was set to go off. He reached over sleepily and turned it off, slowly rose from his bed and rubbed the sleep out of his eyes.

As his mind cleared up, Lucas yawned. Like most sixteen-year-old boys, he liked to sleep in, but he didn't usually have trouble getting up early. Right now, however, all he wanted to do was lie down and go back to sleep. He'd gone to bed early the night before because of a headache, so he decided he probably had just gotten too much sleep. He gave his bedraggled hair no attention before he left his bedroom, walking towards the small kitchen in his mother's house.

Karen Roe was turning over six strips of bacon from the pan, and when she saw her teenaged son enter she looked up and smiled at him. "Good morning," she greeted warmly. "Great timing, the scrambled eggs are ready, and I'm almost done with the bacon. Would you toast the bread for me?"

Mumbling something incoherent but not disagreeable, Lucas grabbed the loaf of bread from the tiny pantry and put two pieces into the toaster. By the time they came back up, brown and crisp, Karen had the eggs and bacon on the table, divided onto two plates, one for each of them.

He handed her a piece of toast with a smile as he sat down and began to butter his own. This routine was a typical morning for them and he enjoyed it. He was one of the few teenagers who had a close friend in his mom, and despite her motherly ways he liked being in her company. Breakfast was one of his favorite parts of the day.

"Do you have any big plans for the day?" Karen asked, starting up their normal conversation.

"No, not really. I have physically therapy after school. My therapist thinks I'll be able to play in a month or so, just in time for the playoffs."

"That's great honey!" Karen exclaimed, placing a hand on her son's arm.

"Well, whether or not I'll be as good as I used to be remains to be seen."

"Lucas, don't think like that. Your recovery has been going really well."

"Yeah, I know. Think positive. Attitude is everything," Lucas said with a heavy sigh. He had heard these words more often than he could count since starting physical therapy.

Lucas had been in a car accident nearly five weeks before, which had caused his shoulder to separate. He had also suffered some internal injuries, resulting in a splenectomy. The only long-term affects had been to his shoulder, but there was still hope for a full recovery.

"So, uh… Keith is coming over for dinner tonight, right?" Lucas asked timidly, knowing the subject of his uncle was still touchy for his mom.

"It's only dinner," Karen retorted sharply. "He won't let me pay him back for your medical bills. Dinner was the least I could do, especially since he had to sell his garage to Dan."

"So you invited him for dinner? Are you sure it's not more than that?" Lucas asked hopefully. Keith Scott had always been like a father to him, in the absence of Lucas' real father, Keith's brother Dan.

"We're getting to be friends again," Karen said slowly, giving her son a look to let him know the subject was closed.

Keith had been driving the car the night of the accident. When Karen found out he had been drinking beforehand, their entire relationship was put on the brakes. She hadn't even spoken to him since, except to return his things he had at the house and to promise to pay him back for Lucas' medical expenses, which he had refused to let her do.

At quarter to seven, Lucas was ready for school. Grabbing an apple from the fruit basket on the counter, he kissed his mom on the cheek. "Bye."

She frowned. "You feel a little warm, you're not coming down with something are you?"

"No, I'm not. I'm fine. I promise."

"All right. Have a good day. Make sure to be home for dinner."

"You know I will," he grinned at her before closing the door behind him. Karen sighed, frowning slightly. She knew he was expecting more from her and Keith than they could give him. She hoped he would realize that and not let whatever might happen that night hurt him.

*****

"You have practice after school today," Dan Scott informed his son Nathan over the phone.

"I know that Dad. You don't have to remind me of my basketball schedule," Nathan replied through gritted teeth, not bothering to restrain from rolling his eyes as his father was not in the room.

"Lucas is going to be back on the team soon, son. Are you prepared for him?"

"Dad, he's recovering from a pretty serious shoulder injury," Nathan replied, his nerves grated almost to their extent. "He won't be at the top of his game right away."

"I'm just making sure," Dan said. "You know I'm just concerned. How are you handling living on your own?"

"Dad, I'm fine. I mean, money's tight, but I have that construction job and they're really flexible about school and basketball. When summer comes I'll be able to work more and things will be fine."

"And you have enough time for homework?"

"Since when have you cared if I did my homework or not?"

There was a pause. "Nathan, I know I haven't been the best father, but I am trying to make up for that. I care about you, that's all. I want to make sure that things are really okay. You're not just saying they are?"

"No, Dad, they're really fine."

"If you needed help you know you could come to me, right? I've always been there for you."

"Have you? I mean, have you really been there for me? Your primary concern with me my entire life has been revolved around sports. Today marks the first day you've expressed true concern about my homework, or about how I'm handling things. And you know what else, Dad? I'm only a sophomore in high school. I have two more years on the team before I go to college. Oh, and Lucas isn't my competition. He's my teammate."

As usual, Dan began his tirade of defenses for himself, sounding like the arrogant and self-assured man that he was. Nathan cut him off to tell him he had to go and quickly hung up.

He cradled the phone and turned back to his breakfast, a bowl of Golden Grahams that were quickly going soggy. His father had called him after the third bite. Grumbling about how his father was always messing things up, Nathan hastily finished his breakfast.

Even though he was only sixteen years old, Nathan was renting his own apartment, not living with his mother or his father. Dan and Deb Scott's divorce was taking an ugly turn with Nathan right in the middle. He was tired of being used by one parent to hurt the other so he had removed himself from the situation and gotten himself emancipated from both of them. 

The apartment was small, especially for Nathan who had grown up in one of the largest houses in Tree Hill. The living room of the apartment wasn't even the full size of his old bedroom. He was slowly adjusting, however. He had gotten one of the cheapest deals he could get in a nice complex, but as he had told his dad, money was still tight. He was thankful now for the car Dan had given him as a gift, because he only had to worry about paying the gas and insurance on it.

Since he'd moved out of Dan's beach house, where he'd lived for a record three weeks, Nathan hadn't talked much to either of his parents. Dan had called him this morning to tell him that the divorce was now final. Even though Nathan hadn't kept his promise to live with Dan, his father had kept his promise in giving Deb an easy divorce. However, it did not change the fact that Nathan did not have a good relationship with either of his parents.

The fight for custody over Nathan had gotten to its worst when Dan revealed that there were things about Deb that would come out should their be a custody battle. Deb refused to tell Nathan what they were, so Nathan moved in with Dan to protect his mom. He was angry with Dan for what his girlfriend Haley had called "emotional blackmail." Truthfully, Nathan was also mad at his mom for giving Dan the power to do that. But Deb always gave power to Dan. It was how their relationship had worked.

She had given him all the power over Nathan's life by making sure she was away on a business trip for half of the time. Only recently had Nathan realized why, and it was the same reason that Dan had used against her to get Nathan to live with him: one summer she'd left Dan for another man. Meaning she had left Nathan too. The only reason she came back was so that she wouldn't risk losing her son, which was a little ironic because the moment Nathan found out about it, she'd lost him.

Casting thoughts of his parents out of his head, Nathan decided that today was supposed to be a good day. He would not let them ruin his mood. Besides, he was much too busy these days to let them get in his way. He had practice three days a week and he worked the other four, not to mention that he had school five days and finals would be coming up in less than three months. Haley helping him study was the only reason he wasn't going completely under in school. People always said that springtime was the busiest, most stressful time of year and Nathan was feeling that to its core.

But for the time being, he would push his worries away and enjoy himself. Life was too short to live it any other way.

*****

Haley James was the youngest child in a large family, and while she loved them all, sometimes she wished for a small family. It was easy to get lost in the midst of so many people, especially when they were all gathered together eating a meal. On this particular day at breakfast, Haley really wished that she was an only child.

Two of her older brothers had stopped by for breakfast before work, a monthly ritual she was usually glad for. But today, her older sister had come by as well. Haley did not get along well with Kristin, for reasons she still didn't quite understand. The two had never gotten along. The two looked so much alike that a few people mistook them for twins, even though Kristin was six years older than Haley and the two did not look exactly alike. Kristin was a snobby girl in her early twenties who believed she was better than most people in the world.

She didn't get along very well with David either, who was four years older than her and the closest to her age. He had bleached blond hair and dressed like a punk, which didn't bother Haley, but he had an attitude to go with his clothing style. He sneered at everything she said or did. He hated Nathan even though he hadn't bothered to get to know him.

The only two of her siblings that she got along with were Jeffrey and Michelle. Michelle was the oldest at twenty-four, a full eight years older than Haley. She was married and lived in Missouri, so she and Haley didn't talk that much. But when they did they always had a lot of fun. Michelle was very laid back and easy going, and that made her easy to talk to.

Jeffrey James was five years older than her, making him 21. He was incredibly protective over Haley but he'd gone out of his way to make time to get to know Nathan. He was the one who had given Nathan a job with the construction company. It was a little scary that the two worked together, but Haley knew that Jeff was looking out for Nathan so she felt a bit better about it. Jeff had always been collected and mature, and she greatly admired him for it.

At breakfast, however, Jeffrey and David were arguing like little boys. David even had his fist up and ready for action. They'd started arguing before Haley was even out of bed, so she never caught on to just what the fight was about. Instead she ignored it and tried to have a conversation with her mom, but Kristin swooped in and immediately started discussing the dynamics of manicures, effectively distracting their mother.

Finally Haley gave up. Without a word of good-bye to anyone, Haley grabbed her backpack and headed out the door. If Lucas made a comment to her at school about smoke coming out of her ears, she would punch him.

**TBC**


	2. Normal Gone Wrong

**A/N: If anyone would like to volunteer to be my beta reader that would be awesome. Just e-mail me, my address is on my bio page.**

**Chapter Two**

Peyton Sawyer loved springtime. She loved watching the flowers blossom and the grass and trees turn green again after winter. Spring showed the full beauty of nature and for that it was her favorite season. If she didn't have school she could have spent all day in the park drawing different sceneries of plants starting their journey back to life. As she stepped onto the sidewalk near the school, her mind was far from textbooks and homework. She begrudged having to stay inside all day when the weather was so nice.

She was jarred from her thoughts when she saw her friend Jake walking towards the school's main entrance. She hurried to catch up with him, pushing through the waves of traffic. She didn't reach him until he got to his locker, halfway down the first main hallway.

"Hey Jake!" she greeted with a warm smile. He looked back at her and returned the smile, but she noticed it didn't quite reach his eyes.

"Hey, what's going on?" he replied.

"The usual. Life around here is so incredibly dull."

"Yeah, I hear that." Jake's smile faded a bit, reminding Peyton of why she wanted to talk to him.

"Hey, is everything okay? You've been really distracted for a few weeks now."

"Yeah, I'm cool. Just life stuff, you know?"

"You're sure? Because, you can talk to me if there's something going on." Peyton was good at reading people, and from the time that she had spent with Jake she knew that he was beating around the bush. "Listen, I just feel like we've become friends in the past two months, and you told me you were around if I needed anything. Just don't forget that it's a two-way street, all right?"

He closed his locker and was silent for a minute. "Jenny's mom is back," he told her quietly. "So far she hasn't done much but come around to visit Jenny, but… she wants Jenny for herself, I know she does."

Jake was a teenaged father and Jenny was his daughter. Peyton had seen first hand how much he loved Jenny, but he had never before brought up the subject of her mother.

"Wow. I'm so sorry, Jake. I know how much you love Jenny." Peyton paused, trying to find something comforting to say but coming up empty. "Is it possible that she just wants to be a part of Jenny's life in any way possible? Do you know for sure that she wants to take Jenny from you?"

With a heavy sigh, Jake shook his head. "Nikki is an all-or-nothing kind of girl. She's like that in every area of her life. She wanted nothing from me or from Jenny in all these months. She's back for a reason. What else would that reason be but to take Jenny for herself?"

"Jake, I really don't know what to say…"

"It's okay, Peyton. You don't have to say anything. I'm just waiting for the moment when she announces that she's taking Jenny. What will I do?"

"Fight her on it. You're a good dad, Jake; anyone can see that. This Nikki girl hasn't been around at all, no court would make you give up Jenny to her."

"I hope you're right, but—I guess I just have a really bad feeing, you know. A sense of dread about the whole situation."

*****

"So how do you like living on your own?" Haley asked her boyfriend as they met up by the basketball court, where they always met fifteen minutes before the first bell rang.

"It's all right," Nathan replied with a frown on his face. "I'm still getting used to it. You should come over tonight, we'll hang."

"Cool. Are you all unpacked already? It hasn't been that long since you got your own place."

"Haley, I have a one-bedroom apartment, and not that much stuff now that I'm on my own. A tornado could go through it and it wouldn't look that much different."

"If you say so," Haley said with a laugh. "Okay, I'll come over tonight and you can cook me dinner."

"Oh no. No, no," Nathan protested, a look of fear on his face. "I don't want to burn down the apartment complex in my first month living there."

"You are not that bad," she insisted as they started walking towards the school.

"You've never seen me cook, Haley."

"Nobody is that bad unless they're grossly inattentive," she said but got no reply from her boyfriend. He just looked at her with pleading eyes. "Oh, fine. We can cook dinner together but don't think you get off. I'm not doing all the work."

"All right, all right. If those are your terms, I accept."

The two turned towards each other and kissed. Nathan took the ends of a few strands of her hair, sifting them in his fingers.

"Nathan…" Haley said, unsure of bringing up the topic she wanted to ask him about. It had been on her mind lately, and more importantly she knew it had been on his. "Have you talked to either of your parents at all?"

She almost regretted the question when he inhaled deeply, taking a step back from her.

"I talked to my dad this morning," he answered. He gave a cynical chuckle. "He's still trying to control my life. He doesn't get it. For him it's about what he wants and nothing else."

Haley rubbed her boyfriend's shoulder sympathetically. "What about your mom?"

"I talked to her on Sunday for a few minutes. She keeps saying how much she misses me. She wants us to have lunch soon."

"Well hey! That's a great idea, Nathan," Haley exclaimed. He just gave her a dreadful look. "Oh come on. You need to bridge the distance that's grown between you two."

"No, that distance has always been there. That's the problem. She handed tome to dad to do whatever he wanted because she couldn't stand up to him. That's how he started controlling my life, Haley."

"Well he isn't anymore, Nathan. You control your own life."

"I know I do, I just… I want a little more time to get my head around all of this."

The happy couple walked into the high school together, avoiding the large crowds that amassed near the main entrance. Instead they walked around to the east door, which saw much less traffic. On their way to History, which was their first class and the only one they shared, they passed Lucas at his locker.

"Hey Lucas!" Haley greeted, stopping herself and Nathan and turning to the blond. 

Lucas shut his locker and turned to the two. "Hey, what's going on?"

"You've been a stranger lately," Haley told him with a frown.

"Yeah, I've been busy. I'm finally starting to lift weights and stuff in physical therapy, and between that and homework…"

"How is the shoulder coming?" Nathan asked, genuinely interested. He and his half-brother never had anything to get along about but Nathan was trying. Lucas was Haley's best friend and that meant a lot to her.

"Slowly and painfully," Lucas replied, also trying to get along. "But I might be able to play for finals."

Nathan merely nodded, not exactly happy but not unhappy by the news either. Lucas had taken his spot on the basketball team when he joined, and Nathan's bruised ego was still slowly healing.

"Hey, I uh—I heard you got your own place. How do you like it?" Lucas asked tentatively, also trying to get along.

"It's nice. No one bosses me around, you know? I had to get a job to be able to afford it, but that's life, right?"

Lucas nodded and then turned back to Haley. "Do you want to have lunch today? We both have fifth period free. Thursdays are pizza days."

"Yeah the only decent food our school ever has," she replied. "Yeah, I'll meet you in the cafeteria. I have to stop by the library first though, I need to return the book I checked out for my English essay."

"That's cool. I'll get us a table and stuff."

"Hey, Nathan, you have fifth free right?" Haley asked, already knowing the answer. "Do you want to join us?" While she was happy that the two were at least attempting to get along, Haley wanted more than that. The two were brothers and they were both such great guys. She knew them both well enough to know that they needed each other. Dan's abandonment of Lucas had vershadowed his entire life, and she knew he wondered why he wasn't good enough to be accepted or ever acknowledged. And Nathan's rejection of his brother, and his tendency to rub Dan in Lucas' face at every possible moment, had made those wounds deeper. Dan would do nothing about it so Nathan was the only one who could heal Lucas in that area.

Nathan needed someone in his life who had stability—someone who was not her. Something she worried that Nathan depended on her too much. She truly loved him but knew she could not be all things to him. He needed something from his family to show him what having a strong family was like: Lucas was loyal and loved whole-heartedly. If they would only accept each other as brothers, they would do each other a world of good.

"No, no, that's okay. You and Lucas should have some time. I'll eat with the guys," Nathan insisted. He did not care much for the idea of spending more time with Lucas than was necessary. He could see by Lucas' face that he wasn't pleased with the idea, either, so he didn't feel bad about cutting out.

"Besides, what would we have to talk about anyway? We could share sob stories about being abandoned by our parents."

Once the words were out of his mouth Nathan knew he shouldn't said it. Haley smacked him lightly, giving him the annoyed look she always did when he said or did something stupid. It was the look on Lucas' face, however, that made him wish he'd kept his mouth shut.

In Lucas' expression was a strange mix of anger, hurt, and vulnerability. He glared at Nathan. "Your mom not abandon you," he seethed.

"What would you know about it?" Nathan barked angrily.

"I know, okay? Your mom loves you; she came back for you! Her leaving didn't even have anything to do with you, and she came back before you even knew!"

"No, she left me with him. You have no idea what went on that summer, or the things that went on for years after that because she did what she did." 

"Okay, hey stop!" Haley cut in. "Don't argue about this! Geez, you two turn everything into a fight! Come on, Nathan, we have class."

*****

"Hey Brooke!" Peyton hurried to catch up wit her former best friend, who actually turned around and waited for her, even if it was with a cold glare.

"What do you want?"

"I'm going to have a get-together with all the girls from the squad tomorrow night. Do you want to come?"

"Why would I want to come and hang out with you at your place? We both know about the company you keep, but I don't like hanging out with betrayers."

Peyton sighed as Brooke walked away. Brooke had been this hostile ever since finding out that Peyton and Lucas had been seeing each other behind Brooke's back, while Brooke and Lucas were together, and then in secret after Lucas had broken it off with Lucas. Peyton knew she had hurt her best friend but didn't know how much longer she could take the verbal abuse.

Brooke, meanwhile, fumed as she stormed down the hall but when she got to her Biology class, she had calmed down. A month and a half later, the betrayal still hurt, and while in Peyton or Lucas' presence the anger was what came out, when she was alone it was more pain and loneliness that she felt. Peyton and Lucas had been the two most important people in her life. Her mom barely paid attention to her so they had been all she had. What was worse was that they knew how much they meant to her and still had betrayed her. Brooke could not fathom ever forgiving either of them.

*****

By the time fifth period rolled around, Lucas was starving. He headed for the cafeteria, briefly contemplating going to the library to meet Haley there instead. He decided against the idea because he knew if he didn't get in line for food fairly quickly he'd end up waiting forever before he could eat.

He was among the first of the students to get to the cafeteria so the line wasn't too long yet. He picked up two trays to get food for Haley as well. Whenever they had lunch together the first one in line would always get food for the other. As he recalled this, he realized how long it'd been since the two of them had lunch together. It hadn't been since the beginning of the school year.

Once he'd gotten their food, Lucas headed towards an empty table near the middle of the cafeteria. He could watch the door for Haley from there without being too close to the peppy cheerleaders who always liked to eat near the door. He knew Brooke had this hour off and he didn't really want to see her. Every time they encountered each other Brooke's mood always crashed and his was quick to follow. They were better off not coming face to face.

As he sat down some guys from the basketball team took seats two tables away. Jake called out to him and invited him over.

"No, thanks, I'm meeting Haley and we're eating together. Catch up, you know?"

Lucas looked over at Nathan, who was staring at him with an unreadable expression. The two stared at each other for a minute, neither forgetting their words from that morning. After a minute, the blond turned back to Jake.

"Thanks for the invite, though. Hey, how's Jenny?"

"She's good. She's such a happy baby," Jake replied with a smile. "Sometimes I just want to protect her from the world you know?" 

"Hey you've got a few years before you even have to worry about that."

Jake nodded, his expression falling slightly. Lucas wanted to ask him if anything was wrong but he never got the chance. With his back to the doors that led outside, he never knew anything was amiss until the gunfire first began.

**TBC**

**As always please drop me a review!**


	3. Panic and Chaos

**A/N: Thanks to everyone for their reviews! To answer _Brody,_ a beta edits the chapter. A beta is a lot like an editor, only on a lesser scale. And to _Aly_, no I am not following the storyline of Brooke being pregnant. If you notice I started posting before the episode "Spirit in the Night" aired. So this basically breaks off after "The First Cut is the Deepest."**

**Chapter Three**

As Karen drove up to the garage that had once belonged to Keith, but now was owned by Dan, she thought of how the car accident a month and a half ago had cost Keith basically everything. Keith and Karen hadn't been friends since, and it had happened at a time when their friendship had almost blossomed into a beautiful romantic relationship. Keith and Lucas' relationship, which had always been more like a father-son relationship than uncle-nephew, had suffered because of it, and Karen knew how much that hurt both of them. And because Keith had paid Lucas' medical bills and not let Karen pay him back, he'd been forced to sell his business to his younger brother. Dan had always been the successful one, and even when he hadn't meant to (which he usually did), he'd always rubbed that in Keith's face. It was almost unfair how two seconds that night had changed so much.

Karen walked into the office where she could usually find Keith when he wasn't working on a car. Dan had sure changed the entire place, that was for sure. At every corner was a sign reading "Dan Scott Motors." The many reminders of what Dan did must have felt like torture to Keith.

"Karen," Keith called from behind her, and she turned to see him coming out from the stock closet. "What brings you by?"

"Oh, I… I just wanted to know what you want for dinner tonight."

Keith allowed a small smile to touch his lips. "You could have called me, like you did yesterday when you invited me." 

"Yeah, I guess. Um… can we talk, for just minute? If you aren't too busy, that is."

"Oh, yeah. Let's go into the office." Keith stepped past her to unlock the office door. She caught of flash of fear on his face for that second that they were just inches from each other, but she didn't say anything. Things had been so awkward between them since the accident that the words to relieve his fears wouldn't come to her.

He closed the door after she stepped in and she frowned. A new oak desk sat in the corner in the place of Keith's ugly green desk that was older than Lucas was. There was a new lamp sitting on it with a bright bulb. What stood out most about the desk was that it was neat—there was no mess of papers scattered all over it.

"Dan sure keeps this place in top form," Karen said, noticing the large colored TV on the wall in the corner opposite the desk, currently playing the Channel Five News, instead of Keith's old, small black-and-white television. Karen remembered that Keith didn't even like to watch Channel 5's news programs, he preferred Channel 11.

"Well it's his money running the place now, and he never lets me forget it," Keith replied, annoyance in his tone. "So what did you want to talk about?"

"Oh… um… well, about tonight actually. Lucas really has his hopes up about dinner tonight."

"And you want to make sure I don't say or do anything that will make him believe it's something that it's not."

"I'm not saying you would, I just—wanted to give you fair warning."

"Consider myself warned. Is there anything else?"

Caught off guard by Keith's out-of-character abruptness, Karen found herself out of words, her mind grasping desperately for something to say. "So… what did you want for dinner then?"

"Whatever you make will be great," Keith said with a genuine smile. "You know I love your cooking."

She smiled a little, knowing it was true, and felt more than a little flattered at his saying so. In truth she became a little flustered, and slightly embarrassed that at her age she could come undone by the simplest compliment from him.

Composing herself, Karen decided that she needed one more thing from Keith before she left. "Keith… what were you expecting from tonight?"

Keith looked at her warily. If you think that I would have come to your house thinking that after tonight, the last month and a half would go away, I can tell you that's not true. You said that tonight was just a thank you for paying Luke's medical bills."

"I still wish you had let me pay you back. Then you wouldn't have had to sell this place to Dan."

"Well it's done. We can't change it."

Karen nodded and the two looked away from each other. She focused her eyes on the ground, feeling slightly disappointed in Keith's answer about his expectations for their upcoming dinner. She even felt a little guilty for her harsh treatment towards him following the accident, but she knew that put in that situation again she would do the same. Lucas could have lost his life, and she could not reconcile the fact that it would have been because Keith was drinking.

"Karen!" Keith exclaimed suddenly, causing her to look up at him, startled. He was staring at the TV with a fearful expression on his face. He looked at her for a brief second and motioned towards the TV.

She turned and her heart froze at what she saw on the TV: a picture of Tree Hill High School from the air with a bulletin running across the screen: Shooting at Tree Hill High School.

*****

Lucas fell hard onto the dirty tile floor, his vision swimming. He put his hand to the burning wound on his forehead and it came away covered in blood. It took him a minute to focus and he realized the shooting was still going on. Through the screaming of the students who were racing towards the door, he could hear the horrifying rapid gunfire coming from three machine guns.

Rolling underneath a table, Lucas looked around at the dozens of other students hiding under tables. He saw his basketball team two tables away. Most of them were sitting up, looking panicked. He briefly saw Jake lying on the floor, in between the dozens of legs that passed between the two tables in the mad rush to the only available exit from the cafeteria. He could see Mouth, Skills, Tim, and some of the other guys but in the craze Lucas did not see Nathan.

When he looked over to his left, Lucas saw one of the gunmen bend down and with his gun shoot three people who were hiding under a table. With horror he realized he knew that boy: it was Mark Wesley, the kid who sat in front of him in biology. Stunned, Lucas realized that this boy was going to kill everyone he could, including Lucas. His only way out was to make way for the door, which was jammed with people desperately trying to get out. He could get shot before he got out, but his chances of living were greater in trying than in staying under that table. He didn't think he would be so lucky as a grazing on his second meeting with a bullet.

He forced himself out from under the table and nearly stumbled, his vision swimming, as his head protested the quick movement. He felt a wave of nausea hit him and he wondered if it was from the flu he was getting or from the grazed wound. He was almost unaware of himself and everything around him as his feet started towards the door. He passed the table where his basketball team had been; apparently most of the players had come to the same realization he had and had gone for the door. Only two remained under the table: Jake and Nathan.

Jake was unconscious, bleeding heavily from the head. Nathan was sweating from pain and clutching his bleeding left thigh. Even with the bullets flying, Lucas could not leave him there. He turned in his path and raced towards the younger Scott. Hurriedly he pulled Nathan to his feet, his recovering shoulder shooting with pain. He was well aware that he could not take both Nathan and Jake.

"Go, just leave, don't worry about me!" Nathan insisted painfully . "I'll slow you down."

"Oh shut up. Since when have I ever listened to you?" Lucas snapped. He looked down to Jake with tearful, remorseful eyes for just a second. "I'm so sorry, buddy," he whispered to his friend as he turned away, half carrying Nathan as fast as he could towards the exit, praying they would just make it to the door.

*****

Haley James was almost completely overwhelmed by panic and fear. She'd been in the library returning a book when the shooting had started, and she knew that Lucas was in the cafeteria waiting for her. Chances were that Nathan had been in the cafeteria as well, eating lunch with a bunch of the guys from the team, including Jake and Tim. Even if she didn't like Tim that much, he was one of the people she found herself searching for frantically in the massive crowd in the front of the school.

Her voice was near hoarse by the time the police arrived—she'd spent the last twenty minutes since she'd raced out of the school screaming for Nathan or Lucas or Petyon—anyone she could think of and so far she had found no one. Every few seconds, more students would come racing out of the building. All the other students around her were hysterical as well—most were crying, a lot of people were trying to find their siblings, cousins, or friends. A few stood off to the side in complete shock. 

A couple of the police officers blew their whistles and got everyone's attention, announcing that everyone would be transported by bus the Tree Hill Library, where all the parents and relatives had been directed to. From there people were free to go home.

"We ask, for your safety and for ours, that you get on the bus, go to the library, and go home from there. You can get your cars at a later time."

Haley felt a little dizzy as the officers directed the ever-growing group to the school bus. Other officers were guarding the other exits while a base was forming for officers to figure out just what to do about the situation. Haley hoped they would get inside the school soon. She'd heard several different accounts already about what exactly was going on inside that school and they were all frightening.

As the bus drove away from the high school, Haley watched more and more police cards, firefighters, and ambulances, many from other districts, heading the opposite way, towards the school. With tears running down her face, Haley prayed that as few people as possible had been hurt. She prayed even harder that by some miracle Nathan and Lucas were all right.

**TBC**


	4. Waiting

**A/N: I'm sorry I took so long on this chapter! I didn't think it would take me so long, but this chapter was difficult. Luckily I have chapter five written and six is started. As always review and let me know what you think!!!**

**Chapter Four**

"I don't think you understand who I am," Dan Scott spat at the police officer, shooting him a look that was equally as cold as the one he was getting in return.

"Sir, I don't care who you are," the officer retorted with a touch of impatience. "Nobody but police officers and other emergency personnel are allowed through this barrier. I understand that you have children in the school, but you would only be getting in the way. All the students are being transported to Tree Hill Library, you will have to meet up with them there anyway. Please go, sir, you are not doing any good here."

Dan scowled, thinking he would have that officer's job when this was all over, as he turned away. Several blocks surrounding the school were being closed down to prevent any unauthorized people from getting anywhere near the school, and that included parents. Dan had been at his dealership when the radio had announced the shooting at Tree Hill High School. As close to panicked as he'd ever been, he'd managed to stay calm enough to drive down to the school, only to be stopped at the barrier by this incompetent police officer.

He drove down to the library and nearly got hit three times by other drivers in the small parking lot trying to find a spot. Normally he would have called out obscenities to them but today he did not have the heart, or the energy, to do it. Instead, he cursed them silently to himself and then swore even louder as he realized that the parking lot was full and he would have to put his car somewhere else and walk back.

While walking across the green grass, having parked his car on the street, he saw a bus pull into the lot of the library and tons of students and teachers came off, all looking shaken. Most of them, even the guys, were crying. But Dan did not see anyone he knew.

"Dan!" a hysterical voice called out to him and he turned to see his soon-to-be-ex-wife hurrying towards him, her face red and puffy and tear-streaked.

"Where's Nathan?" Dan demanded once they had met up with each other.

"I don't know, I've only been here about ten minutes. I closed the café as soon as I heard. Dan, I haven't seen him anywhere. I've asked around, no one knows where he is."

"He has to be somewhere," he rationalized.

"He could still be at the school," Deb pointed out, shuddering at the thought.

"You don't know that!" Dan barked, causing Deb to jump. "Maybe he got out quickly and went to his apartment, or somewhere else with some of his buddies. Did you try his cell phone?"

"Of course I've tried his cell phone, but he's not answering."

"Damnit," Dan muttered, looking past Deb to see his brother and ex-girlfriend desperately trying to pick through the large crowd of hysterical people; parents frantically trying to find their children, students in hysterics, a few reunions here and there. Keith saw his younger brother as well and grabbed Karen's hand, leading her to Dan and Deb.

"You haven't seen Nathan have you?" Deb blurted out, leaving no time for greetings of any sort.

"No, and we haven't seen Lucas either," Keith replied.

"We haven't seen anyone we know," Karen added, near tears. "Not Haley, or Peyton, or Brooke, or Jake. No one who knows where Lucas, or Nathan, are."

"We'll just have to keep looking," Dan told them all. "There's a bunch of kids who go to that school; this is a small town. Everyone knows each other. Someone has to know. Besides, they might get off the next bus. We just have to keep looking."

* * *

Peyton turned her car cd player off as soon she turned onto the street of the school and saw the dozens of police cars and SUVs and ambulances. The road was blocked off several blocks around the school. As she put on her brakes, a cop approached her car.

"I'm sorry, all access to the high school is blocked off. You'll have to go to the library if you want to meet up with your friends."

"What's going on?" Peyton asked, confused.

The officer gaped at her. "You don't know? Where are you coming back from exactly, Miss, Mars? There's been a shooting at the school. Half of the students are still inside. Where have you been? You look like you should be a student there."

"I am, I just… I had this hour off so I went to eat lunch off campus," Peyton lied. The truth was that she had skipped her Biology class because they were dissecting frogs.

She nearly withered under the suspicious glance that the officer gave her. "I'm not in any trouble for leaving campus am I?" she asked, her heart pounding as she began to worry about her friends. "I'd like to get over the library if that's okay."

"No, you aren't in trouble," the officer replied after a brief hesitation. "Now go on."

Peyton turned her car around but she didn't head for the library. Instead she went home, making sure to leave her cell phone on. She sat down in front of the TV, watching the news unfold of the shooting. She watched as a few cops led some terrified students out of the school, and she could not believe that what she watching was real. All of her friends were there. Lucas was there. Brooke was there.

* * *

Lucas and Nathan were near the back of the massive crowd of people frantically running out of the cafeteria and the sound of gunfire was still blaring loudly behind them. Nathan's leg was dragging on the floor, completely useless at the moment. He didn't know why but Lucas found himself looking back towards the lunchroom, just for a brief glance, and he saw one of the gunmen heading out after them.

Quickly he turned right, dragging Nathan with him, and went down the empty hallway as fast as he could, which was actually frighteningly slow. Most of the students were still running down that first hallway, trying to get to an exit that lay at the end of it, all the way across the school.

"What are you doing?" Nathan hissed, his voice laced with pain. "There isn't an exit this way!"

"Just be quiet!" Lucas whispered fiercely, hoping that the gunman wouldn't see them and turn his gunfire on them. He tried to ignore the sounds of screaming and rapid gunfire but it was all he could think about.

Finally he reached a seldom-used door, one that did not lead into a classroom. He knew it would be unlocked so he quickly turned the doorknob and opened it, pulling Nathan through the doorway and closing the door behind them.

The two slowly made their way down a narrow staircase. Lucas' shoulder ached as he practically carried Nathan down the stairs, almost dropping him a few times. They reached a landing in the middle of the stairs and Nathan wanted to stop to rest.

"We can't. If one of them saw us, they could come after us; we have to get out of sight."

The two managed their way down the remaining twelve stairs, turned a few corners and sat down on the cold cement floor, both trying to catch their breaths.

"What is this place anyway? How did you know about it?" Nathan asked between breaths.

"It's like a basement. The administration uses it to stock SATs, ACTs, paperwork, stuff like that."

"And the door wasn't locked?"

Lucas shrugged. "You never paid that door much attention before, did you?"

"No, I guess not."

Neither of them said anything to each other for a few minutes, not wanting to bring up the subject of what was happening at their school. Both were too shocked that it was happening at all.

Lucas looked down at Nathan's leg, which the younger teen was clutching painfully. His entire pant leg was covered in blood.

"We need to stop the bleeding," Lucas told him, pulling off his grey hoodie. He moved so that he was in front of Nathan and he carefully wrapped his beloved hoodie around the other's leg tightly. "Hopefully that will stop it," he said as he leaned back against the wall. Now that they were resting, and his adrenaline was slowing down, he was overcome with a strong desire to sleep. He was just about to nod off when Nathan shook him awake.

"Are you okay?" the brown-haired athlete asked in concern. "Your forehead is bleeding."

"Oh… yeah, I got grazed by a bullet. That's all. It hurts a lot but I'm fine."

"Well you could have a concussion. You need to stay awake."

"For how long? We don't even know how long we'll be down here. We have no way of knowing when this is going to be over."

"Oh, I have my cell phone, hopefully it works down here." Nathan pulled out his phone and tried to call his mom, but he couldn't get through. "There's no service down here." Nathan paused, thinking. "You know, how will we know when we can leave? If you go up to check, you might give yourself away. And it doesn't look like there are any windows down here."

"There aren't," Lucas replied, thinking. "I guess we just wait a while. I'll have to go up and check sometime. We can't stay down here forever." He looked over at Nathan, who also looked like he wanted to fall asleep. "Hey, wake up!" he exclaimed, shaking the younger Scott. Nathan jumped slightly, looking startled.

"If we're going to get out of here alive we're going to have to keep each other awake," Nathan decided. Both inwardly cringed at the idea of having to hold a conversation with the other but they knew they had to do it.

"So, uh… what's your favorite meal?"

* * *

Brooke gasped as she tried to crawl towards the main entrance of the school. She'd been walking into the cafeteria when the gunfire first rang out. The sounds of screaming followed quickly and Brooke turned around quickly as a herd of students came rushing towards the door. Before she had fully turned around a bullet struck her side, causing her to fall on Matt Bennett, a junior who lived across the street from her. They'd never really been friends but he was a nice guy. Matt caught her and carried her with him, even though it slowed him down considerably. They'd run down the hallway with the rest in sheer panic. Even though her wounded side took up most of her attention, the cheerleading captain couldn't help but notice that the number of students running along with them started dropping quickly about halfway down the hall. They were within twenty feet of the door when Matt was hit by a bullet in the back. She felt him jerk when it hit him and together they collapsed to the floor. He landed on top of her.

"Matt?" she cried when he didn't move. She started to push him off of her when she heard loud footsteps drawing near. Without thinking, she closed her eyes and held her breath, pretending to be dead underneath Matt.

When she opened her eyes she felt lightheaded and dizzy and her shirt was covered in blood. There was no one around. She could barely move and looking at her watch told her that almost an hour had gone by. She guessed she must have lost consciousness when she had closed her eyes.

She rolled Matt over slowly, gritting her teeth, and didn't even bother to check for a pulse. His eyes were open and his skin was cold. She tried in vain to choke back tears and decided she needed to get out of the building. Distantly she could still hear gunfire, and guessed that it was coming from the second floor, echoing down through the nearby stairwell.

"I have to get out of here," she whispered to herself. She couldn't stand up so instead she crawled to the door, praying she would make it. As she slowly made her way across the floor, she thought of the two people she had loved most in her lifetime. She had vowed never to forgive them for betraying her, but now she wished with all her heart that one of them was there to help her.

**TBC**

**Sidenote: Okay, ff.net won't let me do the asteriks anymore to separate the scenes stupid!!! So I have put in the horizontal rule. Just thought I would say so. LOL.**


	5. Trapped Together

**Author's Notes: I cannot believe it took me this long to get this chapter up, especially since it was written before the second, third, and fourth chapters! (A few scenes aside which I added in when I typed it up, of course.) Thank you to everyone who's reviewed and to everyone who is still reading this story. I was out of town for most of June, that is most of the reason it took me so long. I can't promise I'll be quicker in the future because I'm moving in a month into my own apartment to a place an hour and a half away from where I currently live. So... I will try my hardest, I promise. If you are still reading this, please send me a review!! The more I get the more inspired I am to write more, lol.**

**A very special thanks to Charli for beta'ing! You're awesome! Now update _your_ fic, wouldja?**

**Chapter Five  
**  
Sitting on the cold concrete in the basement of the high school left Lucas feeling chilled, especially with his hoodie wrapped around Nathan's leg. He didn't think much of it as the two thought up every question possible to keep each other awake and talking. They'd managed to go through their favorite meals, books, colors, fruits, actors, actresses, cartoons, and movies without even looking at each other.  
  
"What's your favorite movie trilogy?" Nathan asked, ignoring the throbbing of his thigh and the lightheadedness he was feeling from the blood loss. Both were completely unaware of how much time had passed and how many times people had tried calling Nathan's cell phone hoping desperately that he would answer.  
  
"Movie trilogy?" the blond repeated. "Uh... Probably Back to the Future. I've always loved those movies. Or maybe Lord of the Rings... I don't know."  
  
"Haley hates Lord of the Rings," Nathan commented. "She thinks they changed too much from the books."  
  
"Yeah she's a purist. Every minor difference made her so mad. She almost walked out of the second movie, I had to hold her down practically to make her stay." The two chuckled a bit. "What's yours?"  
  
"Indiana Jones, definitely."  
  
"Oh really? See, I didn't like the second movie, I didn't think it was very good." Before he could say more, a deep shudder went through Lucas' body, eliciting a deep cough from his chest. Nathan shot him a concerned look.  
  
"What?" Lucas asked self-consciously, uncomfortable under the other's gaze.  
  
"Are you okay?" Nathan replied, his voice scratchy and filled with pain.  
  
"You're asking me if I'm okay," Lucas questioned, irony in his tone.  
  
"Yes I am. Here, maybe you should just wear my jacket," the younger Scott offered and shifted his position so he could take off his blue leather jacket.  
  
"Don't move!" the blond snapped, pushing Nathan back against the wall. "Your leg will start bleeding again."  
  
"You just had your spleen removed barely over a month ago," Nathan insisted. "You could catch pneumonia down here."  
  
"Since when are you the expert on splenectomies?" Lucas snapped.  
  
"Haley did some research on it when you were in the hospital. She mentioned that you would be more susceptible to certain bacteria and illnesses, and pneumonia was one of them. So just put on the jacket—"  
  
"NO! If you take it off, you're at a higher risk of going into shock. Leave it on."  
  
The two fell silent for a minute, their thoughts unreadable to the other. Lucas couldn't help but think that even in a life-and-death situation, he and Nathan still found things to fight about. Nathan's thoughts, however, went down a different path.  
  
"It's kind of weird," he said finally. "Here we are, looking after each other like real brothers would." He looked over at Lucas, whose gaze was suddenly on the floor. He didn't reply to what Nathan had said.  
  
"I used to really want a brother," Nathan admitted. "I didn't care if he was older or younger. He'd just... be someone I could chill with, someone who would understand how I felt about... about things."  
  
"I wonder then why you didn't want me for your brother," Lucas commented a bit sourly, his gaze still fixed on the concrete. "It must have been for the same reason Dan didn't want me for a son."  
  
Lucas coughed again, once more from deep in his chest and failed to suppress and shiver. Nathan merely turned back to his injured leg, thinking about how Lucas must have felt his entire life knowing he wasn't wanted or loved by his father—that he'd been the dirty little secret swept under the rug. Had Lucas looked at his brother he would have seen the remorseful look on Nathan's face. But he never saw it.

* * *

Keith had found a spot near a police officer's station, where he could hear what was going on from the radio. Now Keith, Dan, Deb, Karen, and Haley all stood there, trying to hear something while also keeping a lookout for the boys. Fewer people were coming off the buses and each time the bus would leave, Karen only became more distraught. Deb was holding her, somehow managing to stay strong even through her tears. Keith said nothing to any of them, just stared sullenly at the parking lot, willing either of his nephews or, preferably, both to come strolling up. Dan focused all his energies on eavesdropping on the police radio.  
  
A loud cry caught Karen's attention and she saw Haley pushing her way through people. Karen rushed to meet her and pulled her into a bone- crushing hug. Haley was trembling and her entire face wet from her tears.  
  
"Where is Lucas?" Karen finally asked, pulling away slightly from her son's best friend.  
  
Haley sniffled. "I don't know," she admitted, her voice cracking. "I was supposed to meet him in the cafeteria, but I was in the library returning a book first. He was probably in there when—Karen, I'm so sorry."  
  
Karen looked distraught but assured Haley it wasn't her fault. She gently led the girl out of the crowd, where Deb, Keith, and Dan were all waiting.  
  
"Where's Nathan?" Deb asked immediately, fearing what Haley's answer might be.  
  
"And Lucas?" Keith added.  
  
"I don't know," Haley answered, starting to cry again. "I haven't seen either of them since this morning... But they were both probably in the cafeteria." She took a minute to catch her breath and looked back up at the four adults. "Have you seen anyone else? Peyton or Brooke, or Jake?"  
  
"Tim is right over there, with his parents. They're still waiting for his older brother to come out."  
  
Haley looked to where Dan had pointed and saw Tim with a middle-aged couple who seemed to be clinging to him for life. She'd never before seen him cry, but it was a day of many firsts.  
  
Tim saw her approaching and broke away from his parents gently. The two were never close friends; in fact the only reason they hung out in the same circle was because Haley was dating Nathan, Tim's best friend. But as they approached each other, they both hugged each other wordlessly.  
  
"Have you seen Nathan or Lucas, or--??"  
  
Tim shook his head. "I haven't seen them since I got out of the building."  
  
Haley pulled away from him. "But you and Nathan were sitting together at the lunch table right? With most of the team?"  
  
"Well yeah, but... it all happened so fast, Haley. I don't know. Once the gunfire started, we all just ran for the door. When we got out, that was when we realized that they weren't with us."  
  
"Who wasn't with you?" Haley asked, wiping her eyes. "Nathan? Lucas?"  
  
"Yeah, both of them. And Jake wasn't there either." He sounded distraught. "I didn't notice if they got hit or not... I just assumed everyone was behind me."  
  
At these words Haley only started crying harder. Tim put his hand on her shoulder. "Hey look maybe they just stopped to help other people. Lucas would definitely do that, and Nathan is a leader. He's probably hiding a bunch of people right now, and all three of them are probably fine."  
  
Haley nodded but she didn't believe him. The chances that her boyfriend and her best friend were hurt had just gone up.

* * *

Peyton could barely see through her tears as she sat by the phone, the TV in front of her on. It didn't really matter what channel she was on; every major station was covering the shooting. Several teams of police, many from different counties, and a SWAT team were surrounding the school, and they didn't seem to know what was going on inside the school. There was some footage at the library, and Peyton had seen a lot of students there she recognized. She had been relieved to see Haley, some of the girls from the squad and most of the basketball team, but she didn't see Brooke, Jake, Lucas, or Nathan. She couldn't help but think that they were dead.  
  
The different news stations were reporting different numbers of students dead and injured, and they kept changing every fifteen minutes, sometimes getting higher and sometimes getting lower. At the moment the station she was watching was reporting 25 dead and at least twice as many injured.  
  
"I shouldn't have ditched class," she whispered to herself, staring off into a daze. If she hadn't left the school she would have been there when everything happened. She would have had a chance at being able to help, to know where her friends were and if they were all right.  
  
Peyton sniffed and picked up her phone, once again calling Nathan's cell phone. Neither Lucas nor Jake had one and she didn't know if Brooke would answer hers if she saw it was Peyton. For the hundredth time she got no answer, and for her this seemed to confirm all her fears.

* * *

The brothers had been in the basement for almost three hours. They had run out of conversation and now the room was disturbingly quiet. Lucas took that as a good sing since they heard no gunfire or screaming.  
  
He was glad that his hoodie had stopped Nathan's leg from bleeding, but he knew that once Nathan was moved it would only start up again. The younger Scott was fairly alert, although obviously in a lot of pain, while the older one was coughing too much for comfort and was starting to worry that he was getting pneumonia.  
  
Finally, after having shaken himself awake a few times and noticing that Nathan was doing the same, he realized they were in the same situation as earlier: they needed to get out and get help.  
  
"All right, I'm going to see if the coast is clear, okay? We need to get out of here," Lucas told Nathan as he rose shakily to his feet. "Don't go anywhere."  
  
"I'll try not to," Nathan smiled weakly. Fatigue was starting to hit him and he was having a hard time fighting it. "Hey, be careful, okay?" He looked worried. They had no way to know where the gunmen were, if they were even still in the school  
  
"I'll try to be," Lucas said before disappearing around the corner. Nathan felt a pain in his leg and wondered what his dad would say. He'd be out of the game for a little bit, would probably need physical therapy. He eyes began to droop and, forgetting the dangers, didn't fight it and gave in. He couldn't have been out for very long when he heard someone shout his name.  
  
"Nathan!" Lucas was back and was shaking him. "Come on, we need to get out of here." Nathan forced his eyes open as Lucas draped his brother's arm around his neck. Slowly Lucas stood up, allowing Nathan to move at his own pace. Nathan nearly fell over at the sharp pain flowing through his leg and he could feel the blood oozing out of the wound gain. Lucas caught him and together they hobbled up the stairs and into a long hallway on the main floor.  
  
Two cops entered the hallway and rushed towards the boys, one calling for EMTs in the third hallway from the west entrance and a stretcher.  
  
"Two stretchers," Nathan insisted as Lucas erupted into a coughing fit.  
  
"I'm okay," the blond insisted when he'd recovered.  
  
"He just had his spleen removed and we sat in the basement on the concrete for three hours."  
  
"You boys are both rather cold," the shorter officer said, placing his hands on their arms.  
  
"My brother is catching pneumonia!" Nathan insisted. "He's highly susceptible to it without his spleen. And look, he was bleeding pretty heavily from his head, he got grazed by bullet. He could have a concussion; we were _both_ having trouble staying awake down there."  
  
"Change that, I'm going to need to two stretchers," the first officer spoke into his walkie-talkie. After another minute, some paramedics were running their way with two stretchers.  
  
"You boys are brothers, you said?" the second cop asked. Lucas looked tentatively at Nathan, who nodded firmly.  
  
"Yes, officer, we are. Nathan and Lucas Scott."

**TBC**


	6. News at Last

**A/N: I had to rewrite this chapter because when I went for the original written version, I could not find it anywhere! Color me unhappy, lol. That is why this chapter took so long. I have not started chapter seven yet, and with school I'm not sure when I will be able to, but I promise I will get this fic finished! Just bear with me guys. Thanks for reading and a big thanks to everyone who's been reviewing!!! Keep it up, it really does inspire me to keep going.**

**Another A/N: I am so sorry about the original formatting of this chapter. I forgot that doesn't accept the asterisks anymore, and for some reason the editing page on just doesn't load right on my comp. It's fixed now though. D**

**Chapter Six**

Haley felt more and more desperate as each bus came and left with no sign of Lucas or Nathan. She knew she should stay calm but didn't manage to find a way to do so, especially with Deb in hysterics next to her. Karen had finally settled into a quiet shock, staring at the buses anxiously, every now and then her gaze going to Dan, who was still not-so-subtlely eavesdropping on the police.

A voice through the crowd calling her name pierced her ears; her head jolted to the left and saw her brothers Jeff and David running towards her. Without a moments thought, she ran towards them to be quickly crushed in their hugs.

She had just been thinking that morning about how David and Jeff never got along; about how she herself didn't get along with David. She had almost been playing favorites between her siblings, but her brothers were both here now and had come together for her.

"We've been looking for you for half an hour!" Jeff told her, sounding relieved enough that he might cry.

"Thank God you're here!" David added. "Are you all right?"

Shaking her head, Haley looked up at her brothers, grateful that both of them came. "I'm so glad you guys are here. I don't think Nathan or Lucas made it out." She paused for a minute, looking around. "Where are Mom and Dad?"

"They're around here somewhere," Jeff replied, looking around. "We kinda lost them in the crowd."

Haley nodded, grateful that her family was here. She didn't let go of Jeff or David, and for once neither of them seemed to mind. Any other day this would have felt foreign... the people she always turned to were Lucas and Nathan. But right now she couldn't turn to either of them.

* * *

Nikki sat in her hotel room watching the news with a shocked expression on her face. Jake wasn't answering his phone, and his parents hadn't either; she assumed they were waiting for him at the library.

She listened intently as one of the reporters talked about the emotional trauma the survivors would be feeling for the next several months, maybe even years. Shaking her head, she felt deep sympathy for the students there.

She had meant it when she said she still loved Jake. But he would not budge when it came to getting back together, or when it came to their daughter Jenny...

A sudden thought occurred to her. She could use this. This was what would help her get her daughter back. If Jake didn't want to get back together, then fine. She hoped he was all right in the back of her mind but her main train of thought had just jumped to formulating a plan of using this event to get custody of her infant daughter.

* * *

Not able to take watching the news anymore without hearing from any of her friends, Peyton had shut off the television. This left her in silence, and she didn't know which was the better option. She sat in front of her drawing pad, feeling the need to do something to vent her feelings, but she wasn't sure just what they were. She glanced anxiously at her phone every few seconds, trying to will herself not to cry that it wasn't ringing.

Grabbing a water bottle from the refrigerator, Peyton sat down at the kitchen table and put her head in her hands. She should have been at school when this happened... But if she had been would she have been there to help her friends? Would it have mattered if she'd been in class? Did the shooters even get to anyone who was in that class? The questions drove the blonde nuts but she found it was better than thinking about all her friends who weren't calling her.

When her phone finally rang, she jumped up to answer it, knocking over her water bottle. She paid no attention to the rapidly growing puddle of water on the hardwood floor.

"Peyton, this is Brooke's mom."

"Mrs. Davis... hi. I haven't heard from Brooke, if you were wondering." Peyton couldn't hide her shock at hearing from Brooke's mom; after all, she'd ignored her daughter Brooke's entire life. Then again, this was an extreme situation, and even Mrs. Davis couldn't be so completely heartless.

"No, I'm not wondering if you've heard from Brooke," Mrs. Davis said, her voice strangely even."I got a call from the hospital about an hour ago. Brooke was hurt at school, I'm in a waiting room in the operating room. I thought since you were her best friend, you would want to know."

Peyton couldn't bring herself to correct Mrs. Davis. "She's in surgery?" Peyton choked, all color draining from her face.

"I'm afraid so. Could you... do you think you could come down and wait with me?" For some reason the tone in Mrs. Davis' voice seemed lost; Peyton realized that worrying about her daughter was a foreign concept to this particular mother. She probably didn't know what to think or what to do.

"Of course," Peyton agreed, clutching her stomach from fear. "I'll be right there."

* * *

"They've caught the shooters," Dan yelled to Haley, Karen, Deb, and Keith, still eavesdropping on the police officers in their station at Tree Hill Library. He turned to them, his calm face a strong contrast to their anxious ones. "About twenty minutes ago," he continued. "There are two busloads full of people coming here right now, and that's everyone."

It was almost three o'clock in the afternoon by this time; hours had passed since the shooting had begun. A few clouds sat in the sky above, but the sun shone down without problem. Weather wise, it was a beautiful day. School would have been over for almost half an hour by now, and Haley would be doing homework in her room at home, waiting for Nathan to call so they could set plans for their date that night. She wished this day had gone that way.

The noise around the five was almost enough to cause their ears to blast; hundreds of people were still running around looking for people. Groups of students huddled together crying, waiting for their parents to find them. Tim had left with his parents, but not before making Haley promise to call him when there was word on Nathan, Lucas, and Jake.

Haley had found her parents; they had nearly freaked out upon seeing her. Her mom kept asking her over and over if she was all right, as if she didn't quite believe she was. Her parents had wanted to take her home, but Haley demanded that she stay until she heard about Lucas and Nathan. Understanding but slightly exasperated, the James family agreed to wait with her.

A police officer, whom Haley noted from his name tag was Lieutenant Richards, shot an annoyed look at Dan and them blew his whistle to catch everyone's attention. Once the noise had settled considerably, he made the same announcement to the crowd that Dan had just given. Suddenly the place was so quiet that Haley shuddered.

The last two buses arrived one right after the other; both were full of people. Just like before, as the students and faculty came filing off, the noise was nearly deafening as parents went looking for their children. Karen, Deb, and Haley pushed their way through the crowd until they had a decent view of the buses; thirty minutes later, the buses were empty and only a dozen or so people were left waiting.

"Where are they?" Haley shrieked as Jeff reached for her hand. "Why didn't they get off? Why weren't they on any of the buses?"

No one said anything as the realization that Nathan and Lucas had not come hit them. Before anyone could do anything, Whitey approaching the group, who quickly circled around him.

"I just got off the last bus," he explained, his whole body trembling. "I was hiding in a classroom with a handful of students. I saw Nathan and Lucas being loaded into an ambulance. They were together, they'd been hiding together... they were found by the same officers who found me, and when I explained that I was their coach... one of them gave me this."

He held out a gray hoodie to Karen, who inhaled deeply, reaching out for her son's bloodied jacket. Keith, looking crushed, put his arm around Karen's shoulder as she clutched the hoodie close to her. She turned towards him, falling into his arms.

Haley watched with wide eyes as Jeff pulled her into his arms. David rubbed her back comfortingly but all she could do was stare at the hoodie in Karen's arms. Nathan and Lucas had been hiding together? And how had Lucas' hoodie come off and wound up in the hands of some police officers? There was so much blood on it... That could only mean one thing. Lucas was seriously hurt.

Dan too stared at the hoodie, but only for a second. He was a master at keeping himself together. He tried to let reason take over, he wanted to demand that everyone simply get to the hospital immediately, but for some reason he couldn't speak. No one else was paying attention to him, or so he so gratefully thought. Unbeknownst to him, Deb had seen the momentary flash of devastation that had appeared on Dan's face.

**TBC**


	7. Waiting Some More

**A/N: I am so completely sorry that this chapter took me so long! I got stuck a little bit and then I didn't watch a lot of season two, so I was out of this fandom for a bit. Now I have season one on DVD, so that pulled me right back in and here I am! I promise not to take so long on the next chapter, lol. Enjoy and, as always, please review.**

**Chapter Seven**

Haley had a joyful reunion with her parents and sister and then went to the hospital, where she waited in the ER with Karen and Keith until word came about Lucas. Dan and Deb stood across the chaotic room, Dan rudely trying to answers about Nathan. The room was crowded with parents waiting for or trying to find out about their children. This created more noise than should have been in a hospital, and the pandemonium only added to everyone's confusion.

The teen couldn't stop staring at her best friend's hoodie. She kept telling herself that he'd been alive when he and Nathan were found. But the amount of blood on the sweatshirt testified to a serious injury, and if he'd been wearing it when he got shot then his injury must have been awful.

She tried to picture the two brothers hiding together and wondered just how that had happened. Anything was possible in a crisis, she knew, and the truth was she probably didn't want to know the exact details of how they'd ended up wherever it was they'd been hiding.

Twenty minutes after they'd arrived at the hospital, a doctor finally came out to talk to Karen. "Your son will be fine," the doctor said. "He has a concussion and a slight touch of pneumonia, though, so we will be keeping him here for a few days."

Haley let out her breath and felt like crying in relief. Karen, though relieved, looked shocked. "But… his sweater was completely covered in blood," she said in confusion.

The doctor shook her head slightly. "His head was grazed by a bullet, but he didn't lose a significant amount of blood. It must have been somebody else's blood."

Karen took a minute to ponder that and looked to Keith. Haley connected the dots sooner. "It's Nathan's blood," she said in a near whisper, suddenly feeling like she could faint. Keith put an arm around her shoulders, keeping her upright. Karen reached out for her hand and gave it a small squeeze.

"I'm going to go see Lucas," Karen said, lightly touching Keith's arm.

Keith nodded but said he would join her in a minute. "I'm going to go find out what the word is on Nathan." He looked to Haley. "Come on," he said as he led her over to Dan and Deb.

"How should I know?" Dan snapped when asked about Nathan. "I'm only the boy's father; they won't tell me anything."

Deb stepped up beside her husband, looking exasperated. "How is Lucas? Is he all right?"

"Yeah, he'll be okay," Keith replied and told her what the doctor had said, but neither he nor Haley mentioned the sweatshirt. Deb looked genuinely happy to hear the news and looked to her husband, but he looking around for a nurse.

"What is taking so long?" he yelled as soon as he saw a nurse approaching. "I just want to know what's going on with my son!"

The nurse looked stunned and she looked around the jam-packed room that was filled panicked and upset people. "Sir, as you can see we have a lot of patients here right now. As soon as any information about your son is—"

"That's just not good enough," Dan interrupted. Deb jumped as he started yelling again. "You'd better go find out something, or I—"

"Dan, threatening is not helping," his wife cut in. She looked at the nurse. "I—we understand," she said, giving a pointed look to her husband, "that you're very busy but do you think you could find someone who knows about our son? His name is Nathan Scott. I would really appreciate it."

Looking slightly dumbfounded and unsure, the nurse hesitantly said she would try to find out something.

Haley turned to Keith. "You can go see Lucas. I'll find you when we hear something."

"No, I'm sure they're getting ready to move Lucas out of the ER; they need all the room here they can get," Keith answered, looking around. "I don't want to add to the chaos," he added, looking at Dan.

A few minutes later, the nurse Dan had yelled at returned with a doctor. "Mr. and Mrs. Scott?" the doctor addressed Nathan's parents. "I'm sorry you've had to wait so long."

"How's my son?" Deb asked as she and the others stared at the doctor anxiously.

"He received a bullet to his thigh, which wasn't originally life-threatening, but he has lost a lot of blood and he was starting to go into shock when he got here. Now that we've got him stabilized we'll need to get him into surgery as soon as possible."

"Then what are you waiting for?" Dan demanded.

"I just need a few consent forms signed—"

"He doesn't need them, he's legally on his own," Dan barked. "So you get my son into surgery now!"

* * *

Haley followed Dan and Deb into the surgery unit waiting room and was surprised to see Peyton sitting on a couch, staring in front of her in shock. This waiting room was also full; all the seats were taken and many people were leaning against walls and chairs. Haley kneeled down in front of her friend, all her weight on the balls of her feet, and lightly touched Peyton's knee.

"Peyton?"

The blonde jumped, startled. Haley could tell she had zoned out and hadn't noticed her.

"Peyton, what are you doing here? Who are you waiting for?"

"Brooke," the cheerleader choked out. "But the doctor came out a few minutes ago… Brooke's mom is seeing her right now."

"So… She made it out of surgery?" Haley asked hopefully.

"Uh, yeah, she did. But… She's in really bad shape," Peyton replied, the beginnings of tears forming in her blue eyes. She looked at Haley again and wiped her eyes. "Who are you here for?" she asked as if suddenly realizing.

"Nathan. Well, Lucas is downstairs in the ER, but he'll be okay."

Peyton looked alarmed at Haley's reply. "Lucas and Nathan are both here?"

"Yeah, but like I said, Peyton, Lucas is going to be okay. He'll be good as new in a week."

"And Nathan?"

"He was just taken into surgery," Haley responded, looking down at the ground.

"Right. Which brings you up here with Dan and Deb. Hello, Peyton."

Haley nodded. "It scares me," she said suddenly. "I… I think I'm in love with him."

"Wow," was Peyton's only response.

"I know. I haven't even told him yet."

Peyton nodded. "I went so long with these pent up feelings for Lucas. Now look what's happened." She sniffled. "Brooke hasn't even forgiven me. I haven't been able to make things right with us yet."

Haley dropped her knees down to the floor and hugged Peyton tightly. Right now there was nothing she could say that might not turn out to be a lie.

* * *

Lucas watched the sun set from his hospital room, feeling like it hadn't been that long since the last time he was here. But so much had changed since the car accident that it could have been years. An IV ran into his arm but Lucas had specifically requested not to be given anything that would make him fall asleep. The nurse had looked chagrined at that but went along with it.

"You should get some sleep," Karen told him from the couch at the end of the room, pulling his attention to her. "You know I'll wake you if I hear anything about any of your friends."

He shook his head. "I can't sleep," the basketball player disagreed.

"They have drugs for that here."

"Mom, you know what I mean. I want to be awake when Nathan comes out of surgery." He paused. "Has Keith come back with news yet?"

"Have you seen him here?" Karen asked, then shook her head. She paused for a moment, and then regarded her son seriously. "You and Nathan were hiding together at the school, weren't you?"

"Yeah, I was running out of the cafeteria and I saw him on the ground." The teen looked anguished at the memory. "He actually told me to leave him because he'd slow me down."

Karen walked over to the bed and took a seat, placing her hand on her son's arm. "I'm so glad you made it out. I'm so happy you're all right."

Lucas watched tears stroll down her cheeks and felt his own tears come, only for a different reason.

"Oh, honey," Karen whispered and embraced her son. This day would stay with them both for a long time.

* * *

Karen and Keith decided to go down to the cafeteria when Haley and Peyton came into Lucas' room. He immediately asked about Nathan.

"Still in surgery," Haley replied quietly. "We got sick of waiting with everyone so we decided to drop in on you. How are you doing?"

"Not so good," he admitted honestly as Haley grabbed his hand.

Peyton stood on the other side of the bed. "That makes all of us," she said.

"Have you guys talked to Mouth or Skills… or anyone else?"

Peyton shook her head. "I sat trying to call Nathan for a long time." She paused. "Then Brooke's mom called me." She explained about Brooke getting shot.

"She made it through surgery all right," she said softly. "But she's still in critical condition. The bullet messed her up pretty bad."

Lucas stared at the wall, almost feeling numb to the news after everything that had happened. He wished he could have been there for her, helped her. In spite of all that happened, he cared about her a lot and wished they had been friends again.

"I… I hope she'll be okay," he whispered finally, still staring at the wall. "I couldn't stand it if she wasn't."

"Me either," Peyton replied.

Lucas turned to Haley. "You don't know anything about any of the guys, do you?"

"Tim's okay. He went home with his parents, but now he's upstairs with Dan and Deb. Everyone else on the team made it out according to him. The only people he didn't see after getting out of the school were you, Nathan and Jake."

"Jake?" Peyton exclaimed.

"Yeah… I haven't been able to determine if he got out or not yet. The news stations still keep changing their death counts, and no names have been released…" She trailed off noticing the anguished expressions on both her friends' faces, realizing that was not the best place to go.

"But he's not…" Peyton began, but the words caught in her throat.

"I don't know," Haley said. "Tim doesn't know, either. But so many people are either here or at home with their families. He could turn up. It's highly likely that he will."

Lucas interjected. "I…I don't think he will," he said, looking as upset as he sounded.

The girls looked at him in question, both wide-eyed. "What do you mean?" Peyton asked.

"I saw him... in the cafeteria," Lucas said quietly, looking at Peyton with anguish. "I was running out of the cafeteria when… when the guns were going off." He shuddered as he said those words. "I saw Nathan lying under the table where the team had been sitting at, and he wasn't getting up… So I ran over there to get him and Jake was on the floor, too. He… he'd been shot in the head, and I couldn't take them both…."

"So you left him there," Peyton finished for him. Her mouth opened a little bit and she looked away for a minute. When she looked back at Lucas, she said, "It's okay, Lucas. You did the right thing." She didn't say anything but turned for the door and left, crying silently.

**TBC**


	8. Scott Family Dynamics

**A/N: I know I took a long time again. I can't promise it won't happen again, but I can promise that I am determined to finish this fic. I wanted this chapter to be Scott-family-centric, and so it is. The next chapter will have more of other characters.  
**

**Chapter Eight**

Sitting in the dark hospital room, Deb stared at the heart monitor that emitted the steady beating of her son's heart. He'd been out of surgery for two hours, but Deb hadn't seen one sign that he would wake up. But she didn't care; she wanted to sit by his side and assure herself he was all right. Hours of panic and fear had not ebbed away yet.

The doctor had said that Nathan would more than likely be unconscious all night. He had lost a lot of blood and spent hours in surgery. The bullet had done a lot of damage to Nathan's thigh, and had embedded itself deep. Deb wanted him to wake up and talk to her, but she was content with the heart monitor to testify to his life.

Peyton and Haley had both come by separately, as had the members of the basketball team. Deb hadn't seen Dan in the last hour—he had probably gone to the cafeteria, or worse, to the dealership. She hadn't given anything but Nathan a single thought, but she wouldn't put it past Dan to leave the hospital now. Deb wondered how she could have ever made anything more important than Nathan.

She had driven him away. Nathan had run from both his parents; it would be easy to blame everything on Dan, but Deb couldn't. Ever since Nathan was a few years old, she had made work more important than him. She wasn't happy in her marriage and Nathan had suffered the most for it. Now he was emancipated and living on his own and he was barely seventeen. She worried about how he would deal with today's events when he was living on his own. He would need her.

The click of the doorknob caught her attention and she turned to see Dan come in. She blinked furiously as he turned on the lights. His expression looked severe; as he came closer she his eyes fall on Nathan's elevated, injured leg. She looked back to Nathan as Dan sighed heavily.

"I hope this doesn't hurt his basketball," Dan said, his voice loud and stark in the quiet room.

Deb looked at her husband incredulously. "I cannot believe that is what you're most worried about, Dan. Our son almost died today."

"I'm aware of that, Deb," Dan bit back. "But Nathan loves basketball, no one on that team is better than he is. He's worked his whole life for it."

"Because of you, Dan."

"And what would you know about it? You've spent so much of Nathan's life away that you have no idea how much the game means to him."

Deb had to look away to keep from hitting the man. "I am not going to fight with you, Dan. Not here, and not about this."

"For once I agree. Nathan comes first." Dan sat down on the couch at the end of the room, and again the only sound in the room was the heart monitor. Suddenly Deb found it very distracting. After a few minutes she excused herself, gave Nathan's limp hand a squeeze and left. As the door closed behind her, Deb chastised herself for letting Dan chase her away from Nathan yet again.

* * *

Visiting hours officially ended at eight, but the hospital must have made an exception because at a quarter to ten, Mouth, Skills, Junk and Fergie all came into Lucas' room. Karen and Keith quickly went for coffee, but Karen warned the guys not to stay too long because Lucas needed to sleep.

"I'm so glad you guys are all right," Lucas told his friends, giving them all high-fives.

"We spent hours looking for you, man," Skills said. "We couldn't find anyone who knew what happened to you. There's a ton of messages on your mom's answering machine."

"Yeah, what did happen to you?" Mouth asked.

"Nathan and I hid in the basement, you know where the administration keeps all their papers and stuff."

"You and Nathan?" Skills repeated, his eyebrows raised. "Wow. No wonder you ended up here."

Lucas chuckled slightly but then was serious again. "We… Nathan told the paramedics we were brothers. And until he was out of surgery, I kept worrying him about him. I still am, I think." He looked up at the guys. "Weird, huh?"

"Yeah, well a day like this changes everything," Mouth said. "Nothing else could have put you two together alone in a room for hours."

The blond nodded, knowing the truth in that statement more than they did. He looked at them again and asked then how they'd gotten out.

"I was stuck in a classroom with a bunch of people for a long time," Mouth replied, his eyes growing dark at the memories. Lucas inwardly shuddered at the look on his friend's face. It did not belong there. "We were there until the police came for us."

"We were in a hallway by the east door when it all started, so we got out pretty fast," Junk said. "We went to the River Court for a little while and waited for people."

Silence fell between the friends. Lucas didn't know what to say; they'd all given the quickest run downs of their experiences, and he knew none of them wanted to talk about it anymore. He certainly didn't.

"Well, we'd better let you sleep before your mom beheads us," Junk finally said.

"You're getting too used to these hospital rooms, man," Skills said as he gave Lucas another five. "Get better soon, aw'right?"

"Aw'right. See you guys."

His friends left but his mom and uncle didn't return. He knew his mom wanted him to sleep but images kept returning to his head; they made him afraid of what he'd see if he went to sleep. The TV remote was within his reach but he knew the stations would all be covering the shooting. He didn't want to see that.

His thoughts drifted back to Jake. He could still see his friend lying on the floor, eyes closed and blood pouring from his head. Lucas cringed. Peyton had told him he'd done the right thing, but he still felt guilty for leaving Jake behind. Shot in the head… Jake didn't have much a chance from the second the bullet hit him. Still, Lucas felt like he should have been able to do something.

He'd saved Nathan instead. Lucas had left a friend he liked and saved his brother who he hated. And despite those three hours in the basement, despite what Nathan had said to the paramedics, Lucas wondered if things between them had changed for real. After all of this, would they just return to hating each other, to faking politeness for Haley's sake? Lucas wasn't sure he could do that, but he also didn't think he could quite manage being Nathan's brother, either.

* * *

Karen walked into her house through the backdoor, Keith close behind her. She put her purse on the table and exhaled a deep breath she felt she'd been holding all day. She heard the backdoor close and then a pair of arms grabbed her shoulders.

She wrapped her arms around Keith as he did the same, all the tension between them since the car accident gone. A sob escaped her mouth, all the high emotions she'd been feeling escaping.

Keith rubbed her back comfortingly. "He's okay, Karen," he said. "He made it out, he's fine."

"I just keep seeing his hoodie," Karen whispered, her face wet with tears. "All that blood… And I was scared to death."

"Hey," Keith said as they pulled away. "It wasn't his blood."

"No, it was Nathan's." Karen's voice cracked. "I was so relieved that it wasn't Lucas'… I feel horrible."

"You shouldn't. You didn't wish an injury on anybody. Lucas is your son; of course you were relieved. Besides, Nathan is out of danger now. He's going to pull through. It doesn't matter now, Karen. It's over."

Karen sighed. "No, that's where you're wrong, Keith. This isn't going to be over for a long time."

He nodded his agreement and the two moved to the couch. They sat down and clasped hands. "Luke's will have both of us to count on, just like always," Keith assured her.

She smiled, squeezing his hand. "Thank you. I know I said I couldn't trust you after the accident…"

"Karen, I would never knowingly put him in harm's way."

Karen held up her hand. "I know that. He is going to need both of us after today. I'm glad you're still here for him."

"I always will be. And I'll always be here for you, too, Karen. Always."

* * *

Dan Scott wandered the hallways of the hospital, despising himself for wandering. He did not wander. He always walked with direction, purpose. But while he knew where he was going, he didn't know if he really wanted to get there.

Things were awkward with Deb, and Nathan was still unconscious. Deb thought Dan only worried about basketball, but that wasn't true. But he couldn't help it if Nathan's injury threatened his game. Nathan's entire future was on the line.

He couldn't formulate words to describe what he'd felt when he'd been waiting for his son to come out of that school. In the back of his mind, he knew that he'd been waiting for both of his sons, but he couldn't admit that now. He once again had to swallow his feelings for his eldest son and focus entirely on Nathan.

He had spent Lucas' entire life watching him from afar, pretending he didn't care. He'd even forced himself not to ask any questions about Lucas in the emergency room earlier. He'd managed to get a hold of pictures as Lucas was growing up, without even Karen knowing. Today, he'd spent hours waiting for news on Lucas and Nathan, regretting that he played such a small role in Lucas' life. He couldn't change it now.

He stopped at a door and peered inside the door window. It was dark, he could hardly see the occupant in the bed, and he couldn't tell if anyone was in there with him. It was near midnight, and Dan had heard that Lucas was okay. He imagined that Karen and Keith had gone home, so he was probably okay to go inside.

Stepping inside Lucas' room, he watched the blond's breathing. Steady… good. He was slightly pale and had stitches on his brow, but he looked good, better than Nathan did.

Dan closed the door behind him and approached the bed. This was the one moment in seventeen years he was going to get with Lucas. The one time he could express his love without any fallout. No one would hear, no one would know.

"I know what you think of me, Lucas, but it doesn't matter. I've loved you all along. I had to pretend I didn't but I do. And I'll have to keep pretending." He paused. "I'm glad you're okay, son."

His mind brought up the image of Karen holding Lucas' hoodie, and the horror he'd felt came up momentarily. Briefly he wondered how Lucas had lost so much blood, but it didn't matter now. Lucas was okay; Nathan needed him. Nathan was the one Dan had always chosen; Nathan was the one Dan would always choose. He refused to change that.

Dan froze as Lucas stirred. One eye slowed opened and then the other. Lucas blinked, confused. "Dan?"

The father stared down wide-eyed at his son who looked at him in bewilderment. Then Dan cleared his throat. "I'm glad you're okay." He opened his mouth to say something mean, to counteract what he'd just said, but he couldn't make himself do it. Not on this day, after everything his sons had been through.

Before Lucas had given a reply, Dan turned and left the room. This was the first time he had chosen Lucas and Nathan, instead of Lucas or Nathan. But it would have to be the only time.

**TBC**

**As always, review and tell me what you think! **


	9. The Next Morning

**Author's Notes: Thanks for the reviews and thanks to everyone who is still hanging in there with this story. I can't promise that updates will be coming faster, but I can definitely promise that this story will be finished. Keep the reviews coming!**

**Chapter Nine**

Marvin "Mouth" McFadden planed to make a career by talking. He'd always been able to watch things unfold and find interesting things to say. Now, he had seen more than he ever had before and he had no words. It might have seemed strange to him had he been able to think about it. As he stared up at his bedroom ceiling, lying flat on his back on his bed, few thoughts penetrated his mind.

What did penetrate his mind were visions—horrible visions of visions he had seen yesterday, and the raw horror he'd felt sitting in a classroom for hours, wondering if the shooters were close, when he and his classmates would be found and by who.

He'd been in his Western Civilizations class, when everyone had heard shooting and screaming down the hall. The teacher had turned off the lights and they'd hidden underneath desks. Mouth spent two hours underneath a desk with two other students who had never talked to him before. He'd managed to keep his mind relatively clear at the time, except that he was

When the police finally came, he'd walked down the halls with the others seeing the physical remnants of what had happened. Blood and bullets riddled the walls and lockers and floors of every hallway. They were the very last students coming out alive, unless there were others still in hiding. White, blood-stained sheets covered bodies—Mouth had to force himself to look away at that, but it was engrained in his brain.

He'd spent the entire night awake, fighting it all off. Once he'd gotten out alive, the clarity he had managed somehow to keep had gone. Once he'd found out if his friends were okay and gone to the safety of his house and his parents, it became clear that nothing he'd seen that day was going to go away. He wouldn't be able to sleep if he couldn't even close his eyes, and sure enough, he'd spent the entire night just staring at the ceiling, not even noticing the time passing.

The sun had come up hours ago, Mouth knew by the way that the sun hit his bedroom window. He didn't particularly want to lie on his bed anymore but he didn't want to get up, either. He didn't want to talk to his parents or any other relatives. For the first time since Lucas had introduced him to the River Court, Mouth didn't want to go there either. He'd spent too long there yesterday waiting for Skills, Junk and Fergie, waiting for Lucas to realize he hadn't gotten out of the school okay. Mouth just didn't want to do anything, and so he continued to lay there.

When the knock on his closed bedroom door came, Mouth didn't even move. "Yeah?" he called out just loud enough to be heard, his eyes still on the ceiling.

The door opened and his dad peered through the frame. "Your aunts and uncles are coming over for breakfast."

"'Kay."

His dad entered the room, pushing the door open all the way, and stood at the foot of the bed. "Why don't we get you showered and into some fresh clothes?"

"'Kay." But Mouth didn't move until his dad had come to his side and gently pulled him up. "I can do it myself," he assured his dad. He headed into the bathroom, not sure if being up and moving was better or worse than what he'd been doing for the last several hours.

"Hey."

The first word he heard when consciousness returned came from his brother—Nathan instantly recognized his voice. The brown-haired teenager blinked at the light a few times and then turned his head to the right, in the direction of Lucas' voice.

"Hey," he returned, looking around. The hospital room he was in was large and his was the only bed. That meant he was in a private room, not ICU or the ER. Two IVs hooked into his right arm and he could see through the sheet the bulk of the bandage that was wrapped around his thigh. Then he looked back at Lucas.

The blond sat in a wheelchair wearing a hospital robe; an IV bag attached to the wheelchair with a line running into his wrist. A few stitches ran across his forehead where the bullet had grazed him. Lucas looked a bit pale and tired, and Nathan remembered his harsh coughing.

"You all right?"

Lucas looked honestly surprised by the question. "Mild concussion, a few stitches. Mild pneumonia." He shrugged. "I'll be okay."

Nathan raised his eyebrows. "Pneumonia? What are you doing out of bed?"

"Dude, relax. I actually just got here. They almost didn't let me out of bed, but when I heard you weren't awake yet I demanded that they let me come."

"Was I out that long?"

"Almost nineteen hours since I last saw you, and you weren't a pretty sight. This is the first you've been awake since the ambulance."

"Oh." Nathan looked away awkwardly. "This is some weird role reversal, huh?"

Lucas chuckled. "Yeah."

Neither knew what to say then. Now assured the other was okay, there didn't seem to be much else to talk about. The TV wasn't on, and no adults were around. A few minutes passed in awkward silence and then Nathan started.

"Is Haley okay?" he asked, feeling slightly panicked.

"Yeah, she's fine. Between the two of us, though, we scared her pretty good."

Nathan nodded, relief coursing through him. "What about everyone else?"

"Peyton's okay. The guys from the River Court are all okay. Most of the team's okay. Jake's missing." Lucas went quiet as Nathan's eyes widened.

"I remember seeing him lying next to me," the younger brother whispered.

"Yeah." There was a long pause. "Uh, Brooke's in ICU. She got hurt pretty bad."

Nathan just nodded, absorbing everything. He looked down at his leg. "Well, everything's different now, huh?"

Lucas automatically knew what that meant. "Hey, come on. You could come back."

"If there's anything to go back to," Nathan replied honestly. "I can't even think about it."

The blond nodded. Nathan looked at him, remembering the moment when he had told the paramedics they were brothers. He'd meant it when he said it, but he didn't know if he still meant it. He didn't even know how Lucas felt about it. After everything that had happened, could they really be brothers? Could they put all the junk behind them and forge some kind of relationship? They hadn't even been able to be civil until both of their lives ad depended on it in the school basement.

He remembered Luca pulling him off the floor and dragging him out of the school cafeteria, leaving Jake and many other injured students behind. Lucas had saved his life—Nathan had been in way too much pain to try to escape. He would have been left there to either get shot again or bleed to death if Lucas hadn't risked his life to get him out.

"Hey, Luke," he said suddenly, and the older Scott snapped his head back to the figure in the bed. "Thanks… thanks for getting me out."

"Oh, it was nothing."

"No, it wasn't. You could have gotten killed. I might have… well, I might not be here if you hadn't dragged me out of there, especially since I told you to leave me there."

"We're both okay. That's what matters," Lucas insisted with a shrug. Another long paused passed the two. "Hey, Nathan. You said something yesterday… I don't know if you remember it or not?"

Nathan didn't know if he would ever forget anything that had happened the day before. He eyed his brother warily. "What did I say?" he asked, although he had a feeling he already knew.

Lucas hesitated. "You—well… Nah, it wasn't that important. I should probably get back to my room now."

Nathan watched Lucas wheel himself around and head for the door. And as the blond went, Nathan figured he knew what Lucas had been talking about. And he decided that he did still mean it.

Haley looked sincerely happy to see her boyfriend awake, and the smile she gave him when she entered his hospital room was the first real one she'd been able to manage since the ordeal. He was still pale from the blood loss and was still connected to a heart monitor, but he was alert and moving.

She set down the flowers she'd brought him on the table at the foot of the bed and then stepped up to him. He reached out for her and she slid into his embrace, holding him tightly back. It wasn't one of his strongest hugs by far, but it was possibly the best one she'd felt.

When they pulled apart, Nathan stole a quick kiss from her and she pulled up a chair. "How do you feel?" she asked.

"Leg hurts a little, but the meds are taking care of most of that. How're you?"

She bristled a little and the fake smile returned. "I'm fine."

Immediately he took her hand. "I know that's not true, Haley. None of us are 'fine.'"

Tears sprung up but Haley refused to shed them. "I'm… God, yesterday was awful. I still hear the gunshots. I thought both you and Lucas were dead. But, neither of you are. I will be okay, I promise. Don't worry about me." She squeezed his hand to try to reassure him, but she knew by his face he wasn't convinced. Luckily, he didn't press the matter.

"I brought you flowers," she said, pointing to the yellow roses on the table.

"Yeah, they're nice," Nathan replied blandly. "My mom's probably buying out the gift shop as we speak."

"I'm surprised Dan's not here."

"I haven't seen him yet," he said, also sounding surprised. "Mom said he was here all night, though." He paused briefly. "I'm surprised your parents let you out of their sight."

She rolled her eyes. "My whole family is freaking out. I told them I was coming to visit you and that's the only reason Mom let me leave."

"You have a great family, Hales."

"I wish you did, too."

Nathan shrugged. "They love me, right? At least I'm not living with them."

Haley nodded and then changed the subject, looking concerned. "Are you going to be okay living on your own when you get out of here? With your leg and everything?"

"I'll manage," he replied. "What else can I do, right?"

Haley frowned. "I guess so." She saw his eyes go past her and she turned to see Dan in the doorway. She turned back to her boyfriend and gave him a quick kiss. "I should leave you two alone." As she walked towards the door, she felt Nathan's eyes on her, so she turned to give him one last smile. His return smile was weak and she knew that they both knew that things—everything—were not fine.

No one was allowed to visit Brooke except for her parents. Peyton had been surprised to see Brooke's dad come to the hospital, but both of her parents had stuck around the waiting room the whole night. Even so, it made her angry that they were the ones who could see her for ten minutes every hour instead of her. Peyton had been Brooke's best friend since they were nine and Brooke's parents had never been around. They hadn't been there for her like Peyton had been.

She was sick of sitting in the hospital waiting room, knowing that even if Brooke pulled through, they might not ever be friends again. She'd visited Lucas, and she had dropped by Nathan's room last night. Nathan was probably awake, but they hadn't spent much time together, or even established a good friendship since their break up. And his family was probably smothering him anyway. And she didn't have Jake to turn to—he was yet another worry.

The last time she'd tried calling his parents house, she'd gotten no answer, and she figured she probably shouldn't keep calling them, reminding them that their son was missing and therefore probably dead.

After what she'd heard from Lucas she didn't really hold out hope that Jake was alive. Now that she was on the outs with Brooke and Lucas and not really friends with Nathan, Peyton felt like she had no one. Her dad was at sea and wouldn't be home for a few days. And Haley would be tied up between her family, her best friend and her boyfriend.

She didn't care if Brooke didn't forgive her right away, but she would make sure that they would be friends again. She still loved Brooke—they had been like sisters. Peyton knew she'd made a big mistake, but she would never do it again. She just wished she could see Brooke, wished that she would hear that Brooke would be okay. Then, once that happened, Peyton could try to make all the rest of it okay.

**TBC**


End file.
